By the 1970’s, the Brooklyn piers had become a wasteland on the New York City waterfront. Today they are a stunning park that is enjoyed by countless Brooklynites and visitors from around the world. A History of Brooklyn Bridge Park recounts the grassroots, multi-voiced, and contentious effort to transform Brooklyn’s defunct piers in the mid-1980s into a beautiful, conscientiously designed park. The movement to resist commercial development on the pier sprang up spontaneously but reveals how concerned citizens came together to shape the future of their community. After winning a number of battles, park advocates collaborated to create a thoroughly unique city park that took advantage of the water and the city’s skyline, incorporating a stunning design with vibrant cultural programming.

From start to finish, this history emphasizes the contributions, collaborations, and spirited disagreements that made the planning and construction of Brooklyn Bridge Park a model of natural urban development and public-private partnership. The book includes interviews with Brooklyn residents, politicians, activists, urban planners, and other key participants in the fight for the park. The story of Brooklyn Bridge Park also speaks to larger issues confronting all cities, including the development of postindustrial spaces and how to balance public and private interests without sacrificing creative vision or sustainable goals.